


Amazonomachy

by matrix3



Category: Parahumans Series - Wildbow, Wonder Woman - All Media Types
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-11
Updated: 2019-01-24
Packaged: 2019-10-08 10:15:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,566
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17384594
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/matrix3/pseuds/matrix3
Summary: Taylor's mother had always been a bit of a mystery, a loving enigma without a history. Taylor has never seen any pictures of her mother as a child, or her grandparents. No heirlooms. No life-long friends. In fact, there's nothing at all from before her parents started dating. Her questions were always deflected expertly, often leaving her unaware for hours that her question had somehow never been answered. Then, her mother died in a car crash, and the mystery was buried beneath grief.Until raised voices awakened her one morning, and she discovered her mother's secret.





	1. Dreaming of the Past

He was back on the Andover in the middle of the storm. Wearing a life vest, strapped into a seat, he could only watch as Reynolds struggled with the helm. The glass ahead was a palette of greys. The foaming grey of the waves vanished and the leaden clouds stifling a noon sun filled his view as they crested another mountain of water, only to fall down the far side. Again.

The ship groaned and creaked as they hit the trough, a river of water washing over a deck long since scoured smooth by countless other waves. And then they climbed while Reynolds fought to keep the bow in line. If he lost the battle, if one of these waves hit broadside, the ship would flip like a bathtoy. He sat on the bridge for hours, Reynolds fighting the waves, and the sky went black. They only had the floods, which somehow still had power, and even then he had no idea how the captain managed to keep the ship in line.

He braced himself as they reached the crest of another wave. A blinding flash and a clap of thunder shook his bones, then the spray and howling wind slapped his face. The glass, the helm, it was all was gone.

Along with Reynolds.

Without a guiding hand, the ship slipped sideways as it raced into the trough. Screaming metal and crushing water was all he knew.

He never could remember the next few hours.

Somehow, he woke up bent over a log, caked with sand. Strong, sure hands rocked him back and forth, forcing water out of his lungs and filling him with sweet, salty air.

Spluttering and gasping signalled his consciousness, and the hands lifted him like a child. He found himself laying propped against the log. Sparkling water filled the horizon to his left, lush green encroached from the right.

But it was the figure before him that stole his attention. Her gorgeous, golden brown eyes filled his world.

\-----

He awoke wrapped around a damp pillow.

It had been weeks since he'd dreamt of Annette, months since he'd thought of how they'd met. He rolled onto his back with a sigh, wiping away tears so he could see the clock on the dresser. Just past four. He wasn't going to get back to sleep, may as well get some paperwork done.

The trek to his dresser for a pair of jeans was interrupted by a glimmer from a drawer. Whatever it was, it was bright enough to outline the top drawer of Annette's dresser in pale silver light.

He hadn't done more than dust her dresser since she'd passed, and definitely hadn't put any glowing objects in the drawers. Fingers gentle around the small brass knob, he slid the drawer open. Moving a few delicates aside, he uncovered a silver hand mirror. The regal woman in the glass lifted her chin, her eyes tight.

"You? She still endures your presence?" The small figure's voice filled the room, leaving the air thick with her authority. "Where is my daughter? She does not heed my calls. Where is Diana?"

The silver handle bit into Danny's palm as he clutched the mirror. "Her name was Annette. She chose that name after you banished her."

"She had a lesson to learn. Now, _where_ is my daughter?"

"You don't —“ He stopped short. That was too loud, Taylor was asleep, and he'd like to keep it that way. He took a breath and continued in a low hiss, “You don’t get to call her that! She stopped being your daughter twenty years ago. Or did you forget stripping her of her heritage and throwing her out because she fell in love?"

"I have not forgotten what happened that day, mortal," The woman's voice was ice, her regal visage twisted. "Mayhap your memory falls short. For I took nothing from my daughter, it is not within even _my_ power as Queen to strip an Amazon of her blood heritage."

The flawless face in the mirror gained years before Danny's eyes. "It was her choice. Once you recovered from your ordeal, you were no longer protected by Xenia. You were to prove your worth, a trial by combat against an Amazon, but Diana knew the outcome."

So did Danny. He could hold his own in a bar fight, especially two decades ago, but facing any of the Amazons would have been a joke.

The queen's gaze faltered. "She bartered with Hades, her divinity for your life and freedom. Mortals have no place on Themyscira. Thus, her inclusion in your exile."

She took a fortifying breath, and Danny once more faced the Queen of the Amazons. "Now, mortal, where is my daughter?"

"Your daughter --“ The words were broken glass in his throat, leaving only blood and grief. He dropped to sit on the foot of the bed, the mirror slack in his numb fingers.

"I'm sorry," was all he could squeeze out, his cheeks wet as he scrubbed at his face with his off hand. He took a slow breath, then tried again.

"Ten months," he took another breath, and continued, "and twenty-three days. That's how long it's been s-since she... passed away."

"What," the halting words lost the regal tone. "How?"

"Car crash. We think the other driver had a heart attack and lost control," Danny's voice was soft, but he managed to get it out in one breath. After a moment, he went on, "Ah, a car is--"

"I am aware of mortal technology, Daniel."

He nodded, choosing not to comment on the use of his name. A long silence settled on the room. Small sounds became detectable, the familiar creaks and groans of an old house.

It was only after his ears started ignoring those small sounds that he caught a scuff on the carpet. He turned to find Taylor standing in the doorway.

"Taylor! What are you doing up?”

“Dad,” she murmured, staring at the mirror's glow that backlit his figure. “What’s going on? Who are you talking to?”

“Daniel,” the majestic voice once more filled the room with its authority. “Who is this?”

Danny was torn for several long seconds before shaking his head. “I don’t know how to even start.”

He sighed, then held up the mirror so Taylor could see it. “Taylor, baby girl, this is, ah, this is Queen Hippolyta of the Amazons.”

“Your majesty, this is Taylor Hebert… your granddaughter.”


	2. Dawning Future

I pushed the scrambled eggs around on my plate, mixing them with the mostly intact remains of sausages and pancakes. Dad had busied himself making a huge breakfast when neither of us felt like heading back to bed. Even now, Dad kept himself busy doing dishes in the kitchen. Really, though, after last night's revelations I didn't have much of an appetite for all the food Dad had made. As I stirred the food around on the plate, my eyes settled on the silver mirror resting glass down on the table. I tore my gaze from the small antique, choosing to stare out the dining room window, a rosy glow just visible on the horizon.

I shook my head and speared a sausage link. Forcing myself to nibble on it just made my stomach twist, so I dropped my fork on the edge of my plate with a sigh. Turning away from the dawn light, and ignoring the mirror on the table, I looked over at the kitchen again.

"Dad," I called gently over the clinking of dishes being washed. He glanced over his shoulder, and I gave him a half shrug. "Did that really happen?"

He paused, glancing back at the sink, then grabbed the towel of his shoulder and started drying his hands. Two long steps took him from the sink to his side of the table, and he dropped into his chair. "I know what you mean, sweetheart. It's crazy, even with parahumans all over the place nowadays."

He shook his head, his eyes wide. "You should have seen me after I washed up on the Island. Well, after I got some strength back and could actually see the Amazons in action. There weren't any parahumans back then, Scion hadn't even shown up. He didn't show up until, well, I guess the night of the storm.

"So there I was," he said flip of his hands, "I'd read some comic books and knew a bit of mythology, and suddenly there was this gorgeous woman who could uproot trees and outrun a deer."

"Mom?" I gasped. "She could do that?"

"Yep," he said with a sharp nod, then tilted his head. He continued, his eyes tight, "Well, on the island, at least. As Diana. Out here, as Annette, she was... yeah."

I blinked away tears as the the next question bubbled up. "So, she could have... in the car... why?"

"Well, I," Dad started, somehow divining my meaning, then stopped with a sigh. After a moment, he said, "I thought it was because of your grandmother's temper. Until this morning, I thought she had banished your mother for falling in love--"

"--but Mom made a deal? To save you?"

Dad looked down at the towel, twisting it in his hands. Tears leaked from his eyes now, too. "You caught that, huh?"

I nodded, then stood and circled the table. Dad paused his attack on the dish towel as I ducked under his arm and into his lap. It had been years since we cuddled. Even before my progressing age, independence, and simply getting too big for laps, Mom had always been the more comfortable target for cuddling, having a smidge more padding all around compared to my rail thin father.

But padding, or age, or whatever, none of that mattered right now. I drew in my legs and scrunched myself down as small as I could, tucking myself under his chin. I huddled there as his arms wrapped around me. My PJ pants grew damp from my tears as I felt my hair grow damp from his.

\-----

We stayed like that for a while. Ten minutes, maybe twenty, it was long enough that my legs were cramping up and brassy sunshine poured through the window. I stretched my legs tenderly, then stood. Stepping away from Dad, I saw him massaging his legs.

"Sorry, Dad, I'm not so little anymore, huh?"

Dad smiled, but I could see him blinking away a fresh round of tears. He opened his mouth, but was interrupted by a voice from the silver mirror on the table.

"Indeed, you are almost grown, Taylor," the voice of the Queen of the Amazons echoed from the walls. The voice of my grandmother. "How many years have you witnessed, child?"

"Uhm," I stumbled at the interruption, and the strange phrasing didn't help anything. "I'm... thirteen. Fourteen next month. In June."

"Truly?" The queen said brightly. "An auspicious birth month."

I slowly reached out, flipping over the mirror and propping it against the wall while I considered my response. Conversing with a surprise magic grandmother was strange enough, at least this way I could see her face in the glass instead of a disembodied voice.

I took a step back from the table, sliding over to stand by Dad before responding. "June is auspicious?"

"Of course," Hippolyta declared with a lift of her chin, light flashing off the silver diadem holding back the dark curls that cascaded down her back. "It honors Juno, as the Romans called Hera, queen of the gods, and patron of the Amazons."

"Ah, right," I managed to say with only a slight wobble in my voice. "Queen of the gods. I knew that.

"I, uh," I paused, then cleared my throat and leaned into Dad's side a bit for support. "So, a few hours ago, I didn't know I had any grandparents left. And, right now, you're only been a face in a... mirror. I, um, was wondering if you... might come for a visit."

Dad tensed next to me while Hippolyta blinked in the mirror, her face slack for a moment before lighting up in a wide smile.

"Oh, you beautiful child," she almost sang. A moment later, her lips thinned and her chin dipped before she continued in a soft voice, "I would love nothing more than to accept your hospitality and greet you in the flesh, Taylor. Unfortunately, I am bound to my Amazons and our islands. I cannot leave, not matter the reason."

I felt my shoulders slump even as Dad relaxed. His hand rubbed my back gently for a moment before Hippolyta broke the silence.

"Taylor," she said in a soft voice, lacking most of her normal regality. "Might I speak with your father privately for a moment?"

My chest tightened in pain at the dismissal, no matter how gentle, before I felt Dad flinch next to me. Right, they had quite a bit of history, they had more to talk about than I could imagine. And, knowing Dad, it would go better if he wasn't as worried showing his temper in front of me.

"If you're good with that, Dad?"

"Yeah," he said with a stiff nod. "Maybe try to take a nap?"

"Not likely," I replied with a shrug and a flick of my fingers at the freaking magic mirror on our dining table. "But I can rest my eyes. Just call up when you're done."

"Sure thing, little--" he winced at the nickname Mom had coined for me. "I'll see you in a bit, kiddo."

I gave him a tight hug, then released him and headed upstairs. I saw Dad pull a chair around to face the mirror as I left, but didn't catch more than murmurs of their conversation. By the time I reached my room, I couldn't even hear that much.

A long stretch seized my body as I looked around my room. I thought briefly about changing clothes, or maybe grabbing a book to distract myself, but in the end I settled on my bed, atop the thin blanket I used to ward off the spring night air. After a moment of wiggling, trying to get comfortable, I caved and wrapped myself up in the blanket like a burrito. Mom used to roll me up like this and call me her "baby burrito", and it was my favorite method of napping. Gentle tears accompanied the memory, but I decided that was okay and found myself drifting off after all.


	3. Chapter 3

“I recognize that look, Hippolyta,” Danny said, once he was sure Taylor was out of earshot. “Even after all this time, I know when you think you know better than anyone else.”

The queen’s eyes narrowed. “That is not a very politic way of opening the conversation, Daniel.”

“I’m sure,” he said with a snort, “But sometimes it’s best to start rough, instead of wasting time dancing around a topic. You have an idea, something related to seeing Taylor, I bet. I’d like to hear it.”

Hippolyta frowned at his words, but her eyes relaxed. “Indeed. I did not exaggerate when I said that I would love nothing more than to see her in the flesh. To lose my daughter, then discover that she lives on in Taylor...”

Her words trailed off. After a few suspicious blinks and a swallow, Hippolyta spoke, “I cannot leave Themyscira to visit her. Thus, I request your permission so that she may travel here. I shall be able to hold her close, and she shall learn what it means to be an Amazon.”

Danny’s fist clenched in his lap, but he hopefully kept his face mostly clear of emotion as he spent a few moments in thought. He had only brief exposure to Amazonian culture, but other than the antipathy to men, the Islands had seemed a place that would do wonders for Taylor. To learn of her mother’s background, safe from world affairs and capes. Although...

“Will she be safe? Do you have any trouble with parahumans?” His eyes widened at a thought. “What about Leviathan?”

“It would take far more than what you call 'Endbringers' to pierce the blessings of the Five Goddesses,” Hippolyta declared, her lips curling in a small smile. “As for your 'parahumans', well... we are Amazons, Daniel. Your concern speaks well of you, but be assured that Taylor shall be far more secure here than in your current residence.”

For the first time this morning, Danny became aware of the state of the house around him, of what Hippolyta would be seeing in the background. The aging wallpaper that never really came clean, the clutter of items laid on a convenient surface and never put away. There were quite a few of those, neither of them really had the energy or attention to tidy up. It had been getting better. He suppressed a shudder at the thought of what Hippolyta would have seen if she’d made contact in the first few months after Annette’s passing.

“I... can agree that she would be safe,” Danny said reasonably. “When would you want her to visit? And for how long?”

Hippolyta’s eyes sparkled at his admission. She smiled as she replied, “The thirteenth year is a cherished time to us, a landmark when a young Amazon begins serious preparation for the tests that mark her entrance into adulthood. It is my hope that Taylor can partake in this special time.

“Normally, the training would commence with a celebration on the thirteenth anniversary of her birth, but with Taylor it would be whenever she could arrive. It is my hope that she would spend the last days of her thirteenth year here, then return to you on the eve of her fourteenth birthday. What is the precise date of her birth?”

“June nineteenth,” Danny replied automatically, his mind spinning. “Hippolyta, Taylor learned about you and Annette and the Amazons barely an _hour_ ago, and now you want to whisk her away to somewhere she didn’t know existed — didn’t think **could** exist — at a moment’s notice?”

Hippolyta looked down her nose at him, an impressive feat considering she was contained within a six inch piece of glass. “Daniel, you underestimate her resiliency. That of all children, really. Now, today is the thirtieth of May by your calendar, correct?”

“Yes,” he sighed at her dismissal of his concerns. “Saturday the thirtieth.”

“Very well, I propose we give you _both_ ,” she continued, “a few days to grow accustomed to this new situation. And then, Taylor shall depart your home as the sun sets on the fourth of June, and return to you at sunset on the eighteenth of June.”

“I,” he said slowly, tilting his head in consideration, “think that is still too soon. We are still discovering who we are, just the two of us, and I will not force this on Taylor.”

Her face grew dark, but he raised a hand to ward her off. “But, we already had a plan in place for her to attend a summer camp for two weeks in July. _If_ we decide in favor of your plan, there will be time to cancel the summer camp. I will talk it over with her and get back to you.

“Although,” he said with a blink, “How will we contact you, anyway? Am I able to somehow call you on this mirror?”

“Unfortunately, not,” she replied, “but my sending will arrive with the dawn two days hence. Agreed?”

He took a breath to clear his mind, then nodded once. “I believe so. We’ll talk to you on Monday.”


	4. Chapter 4

"I still feel like you should take more," Dad said as he weighed my small backpack in one hand.

"She was quite specific," I replied with a shrug. "Personal hygiene items and a single change of clothes." I took my backpack from him, slung it over my shoulder, and turned toward the mirror. Hippolyta had told us to hang it on a nail at eye level and then she would handle the rest.

I glanced at my bedroom window. The curtains were drawn almost all the way across, but I could still see the horizon through a small sliver of window. Nobody outside would be able to see the mirror, or anything else that they shouldn't, but I could watch the sun as it inched down towards the hills west of the city. Which I felt like I had to do since I still had trouble believing everything. It felt like this was somehow all a strange, elaborate prank that someone was playing on us. I couldn't imagine any parahuman with the interest, much less the ability, to pull off something of this magnitude, but that was a somehow easier to believe. Maybe that's why I'm actually standing here, waiting for a mirror to magically whisk me away to an island of Amazons. If I actually, 100% believed it would work? I'd probably be too scared to go through with it.

The sun kissed the horizon, and I turned to stare at the mirror. A moment passed, then another, while the mirror dangled from its nail. I sighed as cold disappointment trickled through me.

Then the mirror went blank.

It seemed to be reflecting an expanse of soft grey velvet, cool and colorless. After a few heartbeats, a spark of silver light kindled at the rim. It started inching around the edge, taking almost a full minute to trace its way around the circle of glass. Once the ring was complete, the light started filling in towards the center, then liquid starlight escaped the mirror, dribbling in every direction across the wall.

There was a second of vertigo as my perception shifted. I found myself fighting the certainty that I was the one on the wall, and the mirror was on the floor, resting in a growing pool of mercury. My stomach objected strenuously to this apparent shift in position, but I managed to hold onto my dinner while it stabilized at maybe eight feet in diameter. Despite the perfectly smooth surface, there were no reflection in the still pool. I could only wait in captivated silence with Dad to see what might happen next.

Subtle ripples broke the surface, as if I'd dropped a pebble in a flat pond. My inner ear abruptly stopped wailing in confusion as once more my feet were firmly on the floor. I blinked as my stomach settled, and my eyes opened to find the image of Hippolyta on the wall. It was the first time I could see more then her head and shoulders, and I was a little surprised at how tall she was. A white Grecian toga draped over one shoulder, and she had touches of gold and silver at her wrists and in her ebony hair. A dark grey mist coiled and writhed behind her, making her stand out all the more brilliantly.

"Taylor," she said with a smile, "you are prepared?"

"Yes," I said after a moment, "just as you said, a change of clothes and items for... hygiene."

"Excellent, bid your father farewell and step through." She stepped aside, as if she held open an invisible door.

My eyes searched the image for a moment. Because that's what it looked like: an image, not a door or a hole in the wall that I could simply step through.

Hippolyta smiled at my consternation. "Do not worry, my child, this magic is an improvement upon the mirror, you may step through and back without problem."

I licked my lips and gave her a nod, then turned to give Dad a long hug. "Love you, Dad. See you in two weeks."

He gave me a squeeze and a quick peck on the top of my head. "Love you, too. See you in two weeks."

I couldn't see his face, but he must have shot Hippolyta a look since a low laugh echoed through the portal.

"Worry not, Daniel, your daughter shall return to you in a fortnight, at sunset."

A little shiver ran up my back. There'd been a weight in the air as she uttered those words, then it was gone. Whatever that was, it seemed to satisfy Dad and he reluctantly released me. I grabbed my bag and, with a bracing breath, stepped through the image. I stumbled a bit when I didn't hit the expected wall, but I recovered quickly.

"Hello..." my voice trailed off. Partly because I was caught between saying "Grandmother" and "Your Majesty", but mostly because I was standing in the most amazing, vaulted, cathedral of a room I had ever seen. I gazed around at columns like the Parthenon, ascending to a distant, domed ceiling reminiscent of Hagia Sophia. Nestled among the columns were dozens of statues, apparently stone, but painted to nearly lifelike realism, and beyond I glimpsed rosy light dancing on verdant plant life.

"Good evening, Taylor."

"Oh!" I yelped, "sorry, Grandm--I mean, Your, um, Majesty? I was... this... this is amazing."

She laughed, my jumbled words stilled by her hands settling on my shoulders. "Quite understandable, the temple was designed to inspire awe. I would have used a more modest location to ease your transition, had I not required assistance."

She motioned behind me with one arm, her head tilting in deference. I turned to find another statue behind me with a mirror on a cord around its neck. The statue was of a lean man with tight muscles and painted with golden hair and lively eyes. As I examined the statue, there was a waver in the waning sunlight, a flicker of shadow around the eyes, almost like the statue winked at me.

"You shall be given a tour of our paradise," said Hippolyta as she led me on a winding path among the columns. "In the morning. Tonight, we shall enjoy a small supper with my sister Antiope, and then a good night’s rest for you. It would be all too easy to overwhelm you, some food and then sleep tonight will bolster you for tomorrow.”

We descended a set of wide steps and she led me down a path through the foliage. It was well defined, but paved in soft soil rather than hard packed dirt. We walked in silence for a time, accompanied by the sounds of small animals in the forest around us. "If you wish," she said quietly, the hesitant smile on her lips barely visible in the twilight beneath the trees, "I would be pleased if you called me Grandmother."

"Really? That's rather informal, I wouldn't want to be disrespectful."

"There can be no disrespect when it comes from you, only truth," she replied, her smile stronger. "We first met a few mere days ago, I did not wish to presume you would be comfortable calling a stranger 'Grandmother'."

"Oh, yea--yes, that makes sense," I said with a nod, "I, uh, I'd like, to--"

I halted as she touched my shoulder. "My apologies, Taylor," she stated with a frown. "I should not have broached the subject so soon. My impatience has made you uncomfortable, and marred your first evening on the island. Please think about it, but let's delay any discussion until breakfast."

"Oh, ok," I said, taking a breath of the soft evening air. "That, uh, that supper you mentioned sounded lovely."

She smiled. "Of course. This way, please, we are but a few minutes away."


End file.
